Paul di Resta hoping for race seat of his own

Mar 18 2010 by Eric MacKinnon, West Lothian Courier

PAUL DI RESTA can’t wait to get in amongst the superstars of Formula One out on the track for real.

The Bathgate Bullet earned a ticket into the F1 fast lane as Force India’s test and reserve driver.

The role means di Resta has been handed the chance to get behind the wheel himself and test himself against the likes of World Champion Jenson Button and racing legend Michael Schumacher in practice sessions before race weekends.

However, the local lad is keen to step up among the big boys for real, and views this as a learning experience on the road to earning a race seat of his own.

“It is a little disappointing not to be driving the F1 car, but I don’t believe it will be long before I am,” di Resta said.

“I’m in the perfect position to learn as much as possible. The winter testing went really well and we have progressed forward at a good rate.

“I’ve a lot to learn. It is all new to me and I’m working hard to listen to everything and build a relationship for the future with everyone here.

“I think it is the strongest ever Formula One driver line-up. Michael Schumacher coming back has been good for the sport and it is exciting for all of us.”

Adrian Sutil and Vitantonio Liuzzi drove superbly in the weekend’s opening race in Bahrain, with Liuzzi collecting two points for his team after finishing in ninth place.

And di Resta reveals taking home some points from the opening race was exactly what the team wanted from their first race.

He added: “I’ve know Adrian and Vitantonio for a number of years and we’ll all help each other out and do our best to be successful for Force India.

“What we wanted was a car in the points, which would be a job well done and something which we could build on.

“You have to have goals in life to go forward and provide a good foundation to build on.”